Pet Insurance. Anyone have it?

[NoDivision]

So I got an e-mail that I can get a discount on pet insurance through my employer. I've been looking at plans and it seems like a pretty good idea. I love my cat to death and I like to think that I'd do whatever I need to to keep her healthy or make her better if she got sick. But I know that if she were ever to have serious medical bills, like in the thousands, there's no way I could afford them out of pocket.

Pet insurance providers don't cover pre-existing conditions, so I feel like now would be a good time to start getting it, if that's what I decide, while my cat is young and healthy and has no medical history to speak of

With this company I can get plans anywhere from about $5 to about $75 a month depending on the coverage. I'm trying to weigh the costs and benefits of different deductibles, yearly maximums, payout after deductible, etc.

So does anyone have pet insurance that can offer their thoughts and experience?

[Moony]

Speak with your veterinarian and see if they offer an insurance plan. We offer one through the clinic that I work at. I'd put my pets on it if I didn't already get a discount from working there haha! We have a couple clients that are on different plans that switched to the one we offer. Out of 100 clients I would say about 20 or so are on some type of insurance (1-2 out of the 20 would be on some insurance plan not offered through our clinic). I would recommend health insurance on very young pets and older pets. Probably 10+ years for a kitty; 8-9 for a dog. Good luck with your research

[NoDivision]

Thanks for your input The only thing about going through the vet is that I'm currently trying to transition into a new career, and I'm not sure if that's going to mean moving to a new city or state.

[cyberunicorn]

we have insurance for the horses but not for the family dog we have learnt from past experience that it is not worth the money.

we had lady for 14 years and never claimed until she was 12. in the end it was not worth the hassle we went through. with megan we have a savings account where so much each month is put away for her and it will stay there until we need it.

[Galactica]

I had it for my cat when she was young-  I sure WISH we had had it for the other two cats when they turned 8 or 9 they both developed hyper/hypo thyrodism- and expensive procedures and testing ensued...

They've had assorted other expensive things including a broken tooth, bladder infection, suspicious lump, etc... 

So yeah- get it for your young cat (to cover vaccines and fixing) and for your older cats (before they get cancer/thyroid disease/any number of millions of things that go wrong).

[NoDivision]

Luckily I have an excellent low cost clinic here so I got my cat fixed and vaccinated very very inexpensively when I first rescued her. <3 I donate to them whenever I can because I am so grateful for the services they offer.

Theoretically she's got a good few years until any health problems that come with age might start showing up (she's anywhere between 3-5 by the vets best guess, she was a stray.)  So you guys think I should probably hold off an reconsider once she's a bit older?

[Katika]

I've looked into it, as well, but with the number of pets I have (2 dogs, 5 cats, 3 horses), I couldn't afford to insure everyone.  Plus, the dog that I first started looking into it for has a LOT of medical issues, so her estimate was over $125 *a month* for insurance.  I have insured one of my horses in the past, but all of the other horses I've had were too old to insure by the equine insurance companies. 

My husband and I have actually set up what we call the "critter emergency fund" where we've built up a pretty decent savings account primarily designed to cover any super expensive problems that we might encounter.  To us, it makes more sense than actual insurance, since there will be no hassle of paperwork and there is not "lottery" feeling to whether or not we'll see the money again (because, if we end up not needing it for emergencies, we can always pull that money out later).  It's been a slow and steady build to get us to the point that we feel that we could cover emergencies and still have a cushion, but it's much better peace of mind than the panic of not being able to afford medical treatment

[tsukikakushi]

Generally, with pet insurance you still have to be able to pay the veterinarian up front for services. Then the insurance company reimburses you after you file the claim. Great for people who can afford to do it, or have an emergency savings account already in place.

[NoDivision]

I could probably get family help to pay bills up front if I didn't have enough saved, but it would be nice knowing I could pay them back in a timely manner.  I do have a vet fund that I keep a few hundred dollars in. I can certainly try and build that up more, but I do live a pretty paycheck-to-paycheck existence most months.

This is all great input everyone, thanks! There are a lot of factors to consider so I appreciate the opinions

[slj84]

I work at a vet clinic so my pets are discounted at well on medical care.  Of our clients more hate it then love it and they have a really hard time getting the insurance companies to actually pay.

I think it's a good idea but it needs to be refined more.  At this point I agree with just taking whatever your quote was for insurance monthly and putting that into a account for them.  That way it's there is you need it, but of you don't then you have a nice extra savings account.

[Vintergatan]

I have all my pets insured (3 cats and a dog) but things work much differently here and for Iceland, I would say definitely insure them! But i can see a lot of differences already in our two systems.

In Iceland, they are covered at any clinic for basically everything that is not fixing - for the rest of their lives. We always have to pay up to a certain point, but the rest is always covered by the insurance. We've decided to go ahead and insure them now that they are all young and healthy because I can't even imagine what we would do if 2 or more of them got sick at the same time. The insurance company also gave us a discount on account of insuring 4 animals though.
However, we weren't in a situation to collect from them yet (thankfully) so I don't know if they will try to somehow weasel out of paying us, but I generally think that having insurance is the way to go, just in case your kitty ends up with an expensive, but treatable condition.

[Kiwi]

I have thought about it, but it's not available. I have not found a single company in Canada (Ontario) that will insure Rabbits. There are USA companies, but all Canadian ones are only cat and dog.

[kaoskat]

I considered it once but ended up deciding to just save for vet bills instead and we have a credit card for emergencies that go over our savings.

[SeashellnBubbles]

Actually call the company and get a quote from them. That's how i decided HELL NO! I wanted to get insurance for my baby chihuahua, saw an ad and checked it out since they said "Starting at $5-$45 a month...I don't know what they have that starts at 5...maybe WITH 5! My puppy was healthy, no preexisting conditions, vaccinated and already spayed, and they STILL wanted $125 a MONTH! My own life insurance is $350 a year!
I decided to take $50 a month and put it away into a separate account just for them should anything happen. I'm glad it was there when my Schmutz had a pancreatitis incident a couple of years ago. I asked at the time about insurance at the vet clinic and they said that a lot of them are really a hassle to deal with and that they'll do anything they can to keep from paying out. Plus, as someone already said, you have to pay initially and then be reimbursed by the insurance...it's not like they're there for you and your pet when the incident actually occurs.

PS...I do know the insurance works well in other countries, just not Canada and the US yet. Some countries are really amazing with pet insurance. I'm not really sure why it is... :/